


You're My Favorite Record (Play it Loud)

by Princesszellie



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends: Thrawn Trilogy - Timothy Zahn
Genre: I do like slow burn, M/M, music moves the soul, some longing and some pining, with a touch of lust
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 11:40:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29453193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Princesszellie/pseuds/Princesszellie
Summary: It is often claimed music is a universal language, although it is not always appreciated by all beings equally. How music interests and moves Eli is not shared in the same way by his commanding officer; but perhaps Thrawn just hasn’t heard the right song…yet.
Relationships: Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo/Eli Vanto
Comments: 2
Kudos: 20





	You're My Favorite Record (Play it Loud)

Admiral Thrawn touched the door chime to Eli Vanto’s quarters and waited patiently for the Commander to answer. He absently glanced around the corridor while he waited, and stepped out of the way of an MSE droid jetting along on a collision course for his highly polished boots. Thrawn frowned at both the droid and the fact the door had not yet opened to admit him.

He pressed the button again and held it down out of irritation hoping it would elicit a response from the occupant. Still nothing. His red eyes narrowed as his annoyance grew. Fine, he doubted the door was locked- he knew the code anyway- so he keyed it open and let himself in to Eli’s rooms.

Really, Thrawn knew better than to walk in announced to Eli’s quarters in general but here he was instantly assaulted by _something._ Some part of his mind registered it _might_ be music, but calling this music would be generous. The baseline was strong enough Thrawn could feel it in his chest; there wasn’t much more then endless pounding and screaming in a language he was one hundred percent certain he had never heard before.

It was likely all of the other officers on this deck were deeply grateful for star destroyers advanced soundproofing. Otherwise it was probable Eli Vanto would have already been brutally murdered. Thrawn was considering it; after all it would child’s play to sneak up on him in the current situation.

Seated at his desk, Eli was intently scrolling absorbed in the music and a series of names and numbers. His head was bobbing slightly in time and he might even have been humming along (Thrawn really couldn’t hear _anything;_ not even his own thoughts). Music had never done much for Thrawn, he preferred his ‘culture’ to be quiet and stationary, but the human mind worked differently and it seemed to be working some sort of spell for Eli.

Normally Eli worked in silence, finding it was easier to focus without any external distractions. But there were other times when having the literal back ground noise occupying some part of his brain opened up new doors and let him see things differently. It was a fine line, and often only worked for short periods of time. The scattering of empty caf cups around the room implied he had been at this task a while.

Eli had an eclectic taste in music really, and most times Thrawn could almost see the appeal in his choices- even the strange ‘twangy’ music from his home planet. _This_ assault on one’s eardrums was not at all enjoyable- in fact the Chiss used similar loud threatening sounds in some of their interrogation protocols. He should probably never mention that to Eli, but it did explain his own aversion to the cacophony of horror happening around him.

It was probably a critical mistake to come ‘check in’ with Eli at this stage of his work, and to say Thrawn might be experiencing some small regrets at his unauthorized entry would be a reasonable assumption. The punishment was certainly fitting the crime and he was fast approaching his tolerance for this noise.

Thrawn picked up a discarded data card from the bed as he moved towards the workstation, and carefully set the card down beside Eli’s hand- where the fingers were tapping agitatedly. It was unlikely he heard the soft _click_ the motion made but he _felt_ the puff of air against his skin. Eli looked up, wide eyed and wired, surprised but also excited to see Thrawn. He said _something_ but of course Thrawn couldn’t hear it and the already existing expression of displeasure deepened. 

“Fine, you can turn it down- but not off.” Eli said loudly enough to be heard even as Thrawn was reaching over to adjust the volume. Now the unholy screeching was at least at a conversational level.

They stared at each other for a heartbeat, Thrawn’s dislike of his musical choices not even thinly veiled. “I don’t believe I have ever heard this before,”

“It’s new, Dobbs keyed me into it. I like it…it’s rough; gritty.” Eli shrugged, “It’s also a battle song from that world. A call to arms to fight against their oppressors….”

Thrawn raised an eyebrow, “Likely the Empire I assume?”

“Perhaps.” Eli smiled. “Oppressors come in all kinds and forms.” Sometimes they came in the form of nosey admirals who barged in without permission and got what they deserved. He knew Thrawn preferred his art to anything musical, and certainly this was far from anything he would choose to listen of his own free will.

But it spoke to Eli’s wild heart. The call to be free and alive was a call all beings could relate to- even those currently serving in the Imperial Navy in the hypothetical role of ‘tyrant’.

“Did you need something sir?” He asked, catching Thrawn committing a little more of his attention to the song now that he had some context for the tone and violence of it.

“I was merely coming to see how you were doing, and if your work had produced anything interesting.” The admiral replied, his red eyes sweeping over Eli’s messy computer station and a half eaten sandwich balanced precariously beside the arm of the chair. He was also coming to check on the producer of said work- Eli was notorious for getting deep in a project and existing on nothing but caf. It often made Thrawn’s life chaotic after the fact when the human crashed for three cycles and was perfectly useless for all pursuits.

Eli sighed, honestly he didn’t have much to show for all the hours he had been sitting at his work station but he had a good _theory_. “It’s not much, but let me show you.” He began pulling up the compilations as Thrawn came around to stand behind him.

The screens weren’t huge, and as Eli began explaining and pointing to lines Thrawn found himself leaning in to see better, but the closer he was forced to get, the less he found himself paying attention. There was just _something_ about how Eli was seated in his chair, perched on the edge of it, the curve of his back as he stretched forward causing his uniform tunic to ride up and expose the smallest sliver of skin…the way he tipped his right hand slightly outward in a gesture of punctuation after pointing to a series of numbers, flashing the dark veins pulsing in his wrist…the toe of his boot still tapping unconsciously to the beat of the song playing mostly unnoticed in the back ground but still registering somewhere in the chaos inside his head.

The room started to feel unnaturally warm to Thrawn, who usually ran cold – at least by human standards. He found his eyes resting on the space where Eli’s jaw met his throat and he had a sudden, overwhelming urge to press his mouth to that spot precisely and _taste._

Thrawn realized Eli had stopped talking abruptly and a rush of uncharacteristic panic filled him. Had the otherwise (always) oblivious human caught him in the act? _Krayt._

“Is something wrong Commander?” he asked, his voice giving nothing way. He hoped Eli wasn’t expecting him to comment on what he had just supposedly heard.

“No…”Eli cocked his head slightly to one side, exposing that spot on his throat so temptingly it was all Thrawn could do not to wrap his fingers in the other man’s hair and sink his teeth in. It was clear the music had caught his attention. “I just haven’t heard this song in a long time.” His tone was thoughtful, possibly even sad.

Thrawn watched with unveiled interest as Eli leaned way forward to reach the volume controls and tap the song up so he could hear. The movement was unintentionally elegant and coupled with his melancholy expression caused an unfortunate flutter in Thrawn’s chest.

This track was soft, not like the nerve-frying tune the admiral had come into, it was also in Basic. Eli let himself get lost in the melody, his folded hands dropping to his lap and his eyes un-focusing on the random data card Thrawn had brought to his desk. His breathing slowed and as it got deeper he felt some tension he didn’t know he was holding in his shoulders and neck let go.

The release did not go unnoticed by his enraptured admirer who noted every single element of the change in Eli’s body; the softening of his jaw, the way his head tipped forward and his eyes fluttered shut for several heartbeats…the slower rise and fall of his chest.

For Eli the tune was like going home. He could remember the exact last time he had heard this song- it was before he had left for the Imperial Academy- and why the computer had decided to dig this track up from the ancient past of his music collection he would never know. The words were comforting familiar and flew through his mind and tumbled out of his mouth as if it were only yesterday he had contemplated them last and not half a lifetime ago. In a whisper at first, but then without meaning to be- much louder, his voice joined the chorus.

Behind him, unseen, Thrawn’s eyes widened in surprise and genuine delight. He had no idea what was going on, but he had certainly not expected _this._ Eli’s voice was pleasant and more then passible by human criteria- but Thrawn didn’t view the universe the same way and to him this was like witnessing magic. Something unusual and _beautiful_ was happening.

Eli sang the chorus again, and hummed along to the wordless bridge. His eyes were closed and he was swaying just slightly in time with the mournful instruments. The _Chimaera_ and his life onboard melted away and he could feel the Lysatra sun on his face as if he was there standing in a familiar stretch of tall grass and dirt, this song playing from the speakers of the speeder behind him. Somehow in his deepest soul he knew he would never see that place, or feel that sun again. His chest tightened painfully and he wondered if this was what the heartbreak sung in the song felt like. There was no explanation for what was happening, but there was no reason to fight it so Eli let the song play out- his voice cracking just a little from the weight of it all in the last line.

As the music faded out a small shudder reverberated through the human’s body, as if he were returning to it after being far away. The grief present in his voice was evident on his face and it cased Thrawn similar discomfort. Without thinking he rested his hand on Eli’s shoulder.

Eli felt the pressure of Thrawn’s hand and took the offered solace from his wild and mixed emotions. He turned his head and pressed his cheek into Thrawn’s cool skin.

Eli Vanto was like burning fire and Thrawn was not going to pull his hand from the flames- not even to save his life. The warm puff of Eli’s breath against his fingertips scorched through him to his core; frightening him with its intensity. Instinctively the fingers tightened into the flesh beneath the course fabric of Eli’s uniform and his eyes flickered open. He looked up at Thrawn questioningly-it wasn’t a reproachful question but one Thrawn had no answer to.

Not a verbal one anyway. Thrawn’s free hand found its way deep into Eli’s hair and he tipped the man’s head back just enough to make it easier to press his mouth to _that_ spot at his throat. Eli groaned softly, his own hand now encircling Thrawn’s wrist, his fingers seizing at the veins rushing with blood different chemically but throbbing with the same anticipation.

Eli whispered something Thrawn didn’t catch completely, although it felt as though it was repeating some part of the song. He wasn’t paying attention again; this time he was too distracted by the gratifying taste of Eli’s skin and rapid flutter of the humans pulse against his tongue. This also felt like magic; the type of deep, dark magic which spawned a galaxy filled with such beautiful things as Eli Vanto and his music…

Thrawn moved his lips from Eli’s throat to his mouth, letting all the soft, eager sounds he was making now be something _felt_ as well as heard. _This_ was the music that spoke to Thrawn; this might even be his new favorite song.

**Author's Note:**

> I don't even know. Happy Valentine's Day I guess? Seriously, this took like three left turns...it was SUPPOSED to be funny but somehow it got away from me and even made me a little sad. So here ya go. Just gonna leave this here. Safe to say I am deep in this pit and I am NOT coming out anytime soon. Cheers! 
> 
> I know what the two featured songs are for me- feel free to insert what moves your soul (and let me know! I would love to hear!)
> 
> <3


End file.
